The U.S. Presidential Election is About to Begin! What Do Citizen Congress Watch 's International Interns Think?

According to TIME, this year (2024), at least 65 countries and 4.2 billion citizens around the world will participate in voting, which accounts for approximately 49% of the global population, making it a "super election year." Among these elections, the U.S. Presidential Election will have the most far-reaching impact, drawing global attention. Although the U.S. election has not garnered much discussion in Taiwan this year, the competition is actually quite fierce. U.S. President Joe Biden’s disastrous performance in the June debate, combined with Donald Trump’s resurgence after surviving an assassination attempt, forced Biden to reluctantly announce his withdrawal from the race. In July, Vice President Kamala Harris stepped up as the new Democratic candidate.

According to various U.S. polls, after Harris took over, her support continued to rise, and on August 5, she overtook Trump and maintained a lead. However, by the end of October, the situation reversed, and Trump overtook Harris, although the poll gap between the two remained narrow, keeping the race tight. Experts believe that seven swing states—Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin—could ultimately determine who will occupy the White House.

In recent years, Citizen Congress Watch has collaborated with the National Chengchi University  to bring international students to Taiwan for internships, allowing them to understand Taiwan’s legislative politics. This fall, exchange students Ellie and Katherine shared their observations of the election. They noted that although American politics is complicated due to the electoral system and the different regulations in each state, leading to dissatisfaction among American voters with both the Democratic and Republican parties, third-party candidates still have little room to gain traction. However, in this election, young voters’ renewed interest in third-party candidates might play a crucial role in swing states.

For many voters—particularly anti-war supporters, pro-Palestinian activists, Arab Americans, and university-aged students—these groups make up part of the Democratic base. Because the Biden administration has supported Israel in the Gaza Strip conflict, these voters have begun to consider supporting third-party candidates or abstaining from voting altogether to express dissatisfaction with current policies. During the Democratic primaries in June, over 650,000 voters cast "protest votes" in the form of non-committal ballots, blank votes, or support for other candidates in opposition to Biden. Even after Biden withdrew from the race, Harris' entry failed to energize these swing voters as the Democratic Party had hoped, partly due to her sympathy toward Israel and her middle-of-the-road stance on the violence in Gaza.

This is especially important in Michigan, which has the largest Arab American population in the U.S. For many Arab voters, the Gaza issue is their top concern, and they are disappointed by both Harris and Biden for not doing more to prevent Israeli actions. Michigan has about 200,000 Arab American voters, and Biden won the state by just 150,000 votes in the last election. Their votes could decide the outcome of the race. During the Democratic primaries, 100,000 swing-state voters from Michigan cast non-committal ballots, and if they do so again, it could have a significant impact in a highly competitive election. In addition to the Gaza violence, issues such as housing prices, inflation, women's reproductive rights, and employment opportunities are also driving these swing voters.

Given the current electoral system, third-party votes are typically seen as votes for the Republican Party, as most third-party candidates are left-leaning. Swing states have large numbers of undecided voters, and their choice will have a significant impact. The most popular third-party candidate at the moment is Jill Ellen Stein of the Green Party. Notably, Green Party leaders from 16 different European countries have recently called for her to withdraw and support Harris in order to prevent Trump from winning re-election, further highlighting the global attention on this election.

However, regardless of the election results, there is widespread skepticism about the fairness of the election process in the U.S. While much of this skepticism is baseless and lacks substantial evidence, it has caused significant damage to democratic politics. The more important question will be how to quickly move past the polarized situation after the election and unite with the international democratic community.

Katherine（University of Washington）:

From my own point of view studying politics and growing up in the US, I have seen how the policies of the incumbent president can have positive or negative impacts outside of which party they belong to. Being from a solidly Democratic area, I think this election is raising questions for me and a lot of my peers on whether blindly supporting one Party necessarily means that there will be better outcomes domestically and abroad, especially considering the current Biden Administration’s support of Israel despite the violation of human rights in Gaza and Lebanon, which Harris’s platform does not seem to deviate far from. At the same time, I think Trump’s overt bigotry and unpredictability is volatile and dangerous.   
 Additionally, election time always resurfaces discussions on the institutions and processes involved in the US voting system, such as the undemocratic nature of the electoral college as well as the frustration with choosing “the lesser evil” between two candidates in a rigidly two party system. Therefore, I believe that election time can also be a time of reflection: to grapple with whether the systems we have in place actually serve the needs of the people, or whether we can and should think of new ways to achieve the equitable outcomes all people deserve. 

Ellie（University of Oregon）:

Every cycle seems to be “the most polarized election yet.” And yet, this year it is once again true. With Donald Trump’s increasingly xenophobic, chauvinistic, and extreme rhetoric, this election could very well change US politics. In fact, Trump has promised voters that a vote for him this year will ensure that “you won’t have to vote any more” which is terrifying. While we may not agree with all of her stances, I certainly do not, it is clear Kamala Harris is the better, and only realistic, candidate we have. 

We must remember that voting is a political tool to enact change, and given the choices, I far prefer our odds of convincing Kamala Harris to shift her stance on Gaza, than of convincing Donald Trump to do anything for the collective good. If there’s anything you should take out of this election cycle, let it be the question of whether the electoral college, the two party system, and single choice voting is serving the needs of the people. If the answer is no, let us work together to change the system. And so, while we have no perfect candidate, there still is a clear choice. Only under Kamala Harris can we even begin to think of enacting systemic change, and only under Kamala Harris can we ensure that every voice will be heard.